Kindness Kitchen

“It is all about the heart,” says Jagmohan(Joy) Kapur, owner of the Maharani Reastaurant in San Francisco. A survivor of 2 open-heart surgeries, Joy has found a way to communicate his belief that cosmic laws operate on the purity of one’s heart and not on wishful thinking. Starting this Sunday, Maharani Restaurant offers “Kindness Kitchen”, a weekly meal where visitors are presented with a bill with a big zero on it and a note that says – “In the spirit of kindness and generosity, someone who dined before you made a gift of your meal. You are free to leave whatever you like when you are done. All of us are working here as volunteers and are providing this in the spirit of service. We wish and hope you will continue the cycle of generosity in your own way.”

Inspired by Karma Kitchen, Kindness Kitchen hopes to encourage the concept of paying it forward. “There is a faintly negative tone about “karma”,” says Joy. “There is an aspect of punishment to it.” Instead he wants his program to be about unconditional service and compassion towards our fellowmen.

While Maharani is not a vegetarian restaurant, the free meal served on Sundays will be vegetarian with some vegan dishes. Joy is enthusiastic about spreading the good word about vegetarianism. he reels off statistics about the environmental impact of meat. He is a reformed quasi-vegetarian himself ( fish is ok!) and hopes other people will be motivated to do the same.

Should some patrons decide to pay( what they wish), 9% of the gross take will go to Home of Hope, an organization that executes projects in India and is dear to Joy Kapur.

Check out Kindness Kitchen at the Maharani restaurant this Sunday or any other Sundays to come. The Kindness Kitvchen is open from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. every Sunday this December. The menu for this weekend( it will change each time) is as follows –

As Joy puts it, “the vegetarian and vegan dishes are served with love, kindness and offered as an unconditional gift by the volunteers at the restaurant. They know that the joy they spread will come back to them manifold. “